I dig those early texts, from or close to Arabic Alchemy. They somehow feel 'authentic' to me, whereas later authors are more likely to have gone off on a tangent. (But of course, that needs to be evaluated on a case by case basis.)

I think so too. Specially after strange uncorroborated notions like a mysterious and paradoxical "spirit" supposedly pulled from thin air, or "condensing" sunlight or moonlight into supposed liquids/powders, and the like bizarre and outlandish claims became very popular among seekers. The early Latin alchemy was much more like the Graeco-Egyptian, Arabic and Persian ones, concerned with manipulations of actual, real, tangible substances, not hocus-pocus/abracadabra/flimflam claims.

PS: I don't mean that those earlier alchemists were devoid of their own share of fanciful theories and beliefs, just that their practice was grounded on manipulating tangible, real substances, not fictitious notions like pulling a supposed "spirit" out of thin air, or "condensing" moonbeams, and the like fantasies.

I think so too. Specially after strange uncorroborated notions like a mysterious and paradoxical "spirit" supposedly pulled from thin air, or "condensing" sunlight or moonlight into supposed liquids/powders, and the like bizarre and outlandish claims became very popular among seekers. The early Latin alchemy was much more like the Graeco-Egyptian, Arabic and Persian ones, concerned with manipulations of actual, real, tangible substances, not hocus-pocus/abracadabra/flimflam claims.

PS: I don't mean that those earlier alchemists were devoid of their own share of fanciful theories and beliefs, just that their practice was grounded on manipulating tangible, real substances, not fictitious notions like pulling a supposed "spirit" out of thin air, or "condensing" moonbeams, and the like fantasies.

Leaving the question of the viability of extracting the SM aside for now, what you refer to as the earlier Alchemists' "own share of fanciful theories and beliefs" appears to be nothing less than the ancient Natural Philosophy with its Platonic, Aristotelian and Hermetic foundations, which provided the theoretical framework for the practical art. Although I readily admit that it can use some updating, I don't see how you could dismiss it in toto and yet believe in the validity of the Great Work and the Philosopher's Stone. They simply can't be explained in terms of contemporary materialistic science.

Leaving the question of the viability of extracting the SM aside for now, what you refer to as the earlier Alchemists' "own share of fanciful theories and beliefs" appears to be nothing less than the ancient Natural Philosophy with its Platonic, Aristotelian and Hermetic foundations, which provided the theoretical framework for the practical art. Although I readily admit that it can use some updating, I don't see how you could dismiss it in toto and yet believe in the validity of the Great Work and the Philosopher's Stone. They simply can't be explained in terms of contemporary materialistic science.

Not quite, it is way more likely the other way around: the Stone was discovered accidentally first, through simple & straightforward empiricism, trial & error, like most discoveries of mankind, then a whole bunch of fanciful theories/speculations/conjectures regarding the subject were superimposed on it over the centuries to try to "explain" it. I can very safely discard all this mass of speculation without blinking an eye, just like I do the same about gravity (nobody has ever really been able to explain what it is, yet we know it is a fact simply because we can observe its effects all over the place), for example, and still accept its reality.

As for my interest in the Stone: it is most certainly NOT any of the fanciful theories and beliefs of the alchemists that makes me believe in it. It is the fact that I know that transmutation is quite real, plus the amount of historical witnesses who handled or saw samples of the Stone in action. It takes way more than just theories to make me interested in something. My palate requires more substantial things, it is not satisfied with morsels of empty air.

When you finish with your moonbeam capture, you could make a big dobson telescope with it :P

And that will most likely be the sole purpose it will ever serve, as the "moonbeam capturing/condensing/materializing" will 99.99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 % sure be a failure